Mar 27, 2010

(Malaysiakini) Former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamed today told his successor Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to open his ears to the voice of Perkasa and other Malay NGOs.

"I would like to remind the current leadership to listen to the Malay NGOs. They represent the Malays. He should be mindful of the Malays for they are his constituents. They hold the votes (in their hands)."

Speaking while officiating the inaugural Perkasa general meeting at PWTC in Kuala Lumpur today, Mahathir echoed Perkasa chief Ibrahim Ali's earlier speech, warning of dire electoral consequences should Najib fail to listen and address the needs of the Malays.

He also reiterated what former minister Azmi Khalid told Malaysiakini prior to the Perkasa's meeting today, which was attended by 4,000 people.

"The Malays are flocking to Perkasa because Umno has failed to promote and fight for the Malay cause."

Several times during his speech, Mahathir also rejected critics' view of him being a racist."I am not a racist," he said, and repeatedly stressed, "I am a son of Malaysia."

'You can't clap with one hand'

At a press conference after the opening ceremony, Mahathir lashed out at his former deputy and present Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim and his many conspiracy claims.

"If he cannot defend himself, he calls it conspiracy. It is as if everyone is hatching a conspiracy against him (Anwar).

"When I was in power last time, everyone knew there was a conspiracy to topple me. As my number two, he never said anything about it, but he used others to say things."

"This is a free country, he can say what he likes.They (Kelantan in appointing Razaleigh) can do what they like, but they can't do anything if they clap with one hand (without the federal government's cooperation)."

Mahathir also accused Kelantan MB Nik Aziz Nik Mat of colluding with those behind the Sept 16 takeover bid when the latter advised Bayan Baru MP Zahrain Hashim not to release embarrassing details about his former party.